12. Chapter 12
Chapter twelve
Rowan
“You girls outdid yourselves,” Mom said as she admired the dessert spread Poppy and I spent the last twenty minutes arranging.
Besides six-dozen cupcakes, I’d made cherry, coconut, and blueberry tarts, plus an assortment of cookies. The star-shaped tower held different flavors of cupcakes on each of the four tiers. The bottom two were plain chocolate and vanilla with red, white, and blue marbled frosting for the kids, but the top tiers had more exotic flavors.
My favorite was raspberry-filled chocolate with hints of hazelnut. Poppy’s was a coffee-infused cupcake with salted caramel icing. She’d spent hours building the tower and shaping stars from different colored fondant. Then she piped the icing and applied decorating dust in gold and silver. She’d elevated a simple cupcake to something worthy of a Pinterest board. I found myself baking more desserts just so I could watch her work.
The few times I’d seen Poppy sculpt, she’d seemed tense, tortured even. She’d become so focused, she’d forget to eat or sleep. We were all afraid to interrupt her. She once threw a chisel at me when I asked if she wanted to take a break and go for a walk.
A completely different side of Poppy emerged when she decorated cupcakes. The work was repetitive, yet artistic. The combination made her eerily peaceful. I swear I heard her humming. During the more monotonous tasks, like piping, we chatted about the café, Chris’s training, and even her current sculpture project.
“Do you think I made too much?” I asked Mom as Poppy fanned stacks of red-white-and-blue napkins.
“If there’s anything left over, we’ll just tell everyone to take home whatever they want.”
Poppy stood back and admired the table with a huge smile on her face.
Mom glanced between Poppy and me, and her eyes widened. “You could do this professionally. You’re both so talented, and your skills complement each other perfectly.”
Poppy waved her hand. “Mom, you’re biased. No one would pay for this.”
“I would,” Lauren said, walking up. She had on a billowy white-and-blue polka dot dress and a pair of red sandals. I looked down at my flour-covered t-shirt and cringed.
“You’re also biased,” Poppy said.
“I should change,” I said, gathering the Tupperware containers we’d used to move the cupcakes outside.
“Hurry,” Mom said. “We’re eating at six.”
The Peace Falls police had placed barricades on either end of the street at five-thirty. Up and down the block, neighbors were carrying folding tables toward our house, which sat smack in the middle of the street.
“I don’t suppose you’re changing for the party, Poppy?” Mom added.
Poppy looked down at her black dress. “Not unless you want me to add my skull necklace. The fancy one.”
“Maybe a sun hat,” Mom said. “You’re still a redhead, after all.”
Lauren insisted on taking the Tupperware as we followed my sister into the house and back to the kitchen.
“I’m not an invalid,” I said as Lauren dumped the plasticware onto the same section of counter where Cal had pressed his hard body against mine. Despite how much I’d tried to pretend THE kiss hadn’t happened, my cheeks burned. I was equally turned on and mortified by the memory. Cal couldn’t leave the kitchen fast enough and hadn’t spoken to me since, but it was, without question, the hottest kiss of my life.
“Are you feeling ok?” Lauren asked, putting her hand on my forehead. “You’re all red.”
“I’m fine,” I said, forcing a smile. “We’ve been running around all day.”
“Well cool off, or you won’t be able to wear the dress I brought you. You’re not wearing that star romper again.”
“What’s wrong with my star romper? It’s festive.”
“It’s hideous,” Poppy said.
I crossed my arms and glared at the pair of them. “Why didn’t y’all say something all the other times I wore it.”
Lauren shrugged. “You seemed to like wearing it.”
“She means you weren’t single then, so it didn’t matter,” Poppy said, rummaging through the hat rack in the corner. With three redheads in the house, we’d amassed an impressive collection. Poppy pulled out a large-brim black hat better suited for a high-society funeral than a 4 th of July picnic.
“Do you even need a hat?” I asked. “The sun will be down in a couple hours.”
“Mom's right. It completes my outfit.”
“And you seriously expect me to take style advice from you.”
“Fine,” she said, plopping the ridiculous hat on her head. “Take it from Lauren.”
Lauren smiled. “I left the dress on your bed. Oh, and take your hair down from that messy bun.”
“It’s eighty-nine degrees. I’m not wearing my hair down.”
Lauren stuck out her bottom lip in an exaggerated pout. “Fine, but I’m doing your makeup.”
“I’ll guard the cupcakes,” Poppy said.
Lauren sighed. “People are supposed to eat them, Poppy. Take a picture and then walk away. You’ll scare the children.”
“I meant from flies,” my sister said, but the slight blush on her cheeks made me question if that’s all she’d be swatting away.
“We better hurry,” Lauren said, grabbing my hand and tugging me up the stairs to the room I shared with Poppy.
“Absolutely not,” I said, when I saw the dress she’d brought.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“It has spaghetti straps. I refuse to be tugging on a strapless bra all evening.”
“So don’t wear a bra. It’s not like you’re a D-cup.”
True. But I wasn’t one to walk around with the girls free, no matter how small they were.
“It’s red, Lauren,” I said, grabbing the dress.
“Which will look great with your hair.” She took the dress and held it against my front. “See,” she said, turning us toward the full-length mirror on the back of the door.
I shook my head. “It’s too much. I’ll look ridiculous.”
“You’ll look hot. Do you want all these people to pity you, or would you rather make them question why anyone would let you go?”
“I broke up with Brad.”
“Because he cheated. And every single person out there knows it.”
I sank onto my bed. “How would they know that?”
Lauren sat beside me and grabbed my hand. “I love your mom. She’s one of the sweetest people I know, but sometimes her good intentions have a way of backfiring.”
My stomach sank. “What did she do?”
“Try not to be mad, but she told all her friends what happened. She didn’t want any of them asking you about Brad or why you were home. You can imagine how fast word spread after that.”
I’d been in Peace Falls almost three weeks, and no one had asked me a single question about why I was back or why my husband wasn’t with me. I should have realized something was up, but I just figured no one cared. It’s not like I was the town’s sweetheart. “How long have you known?”
Lauren had the decency to cringe. “I heard people talking about you at Karma the day before you arrived. I figured the harm was already done, and you’ve been in so much pain lately, I didn’t want to make it worse.”
“Great,” I said, flopping back on the bed and putting my arm over my eyes. “Want to ditch the picnic and watch Mean Girls with me?”
Lauren pulled my arm from my face. “Then we’d have to tell your mom why. And you and I both know how much that would upset her.”
“Maybe for once I don’t care.”
Lauren shook her head. “Come on, you have to make an appearance in this dress and make sure Poppy isn’t scaring people from the dessert table. If you still feel like hiding after an hour, we can binge Mean Girl and The Princess Diaries .”
“Half an hour.”
“Fine.”
“And no makeup.”
“Mascara and lip gloss.”
I nodded and she clapped her hands.
By the time Lauren finished with me, I had a high ponytail that kept my neck cool but freed my curls. The dress showed a lot of skin but somehow remained tasteful, even without a bra. I dug a pair of silver sandals from the closet and allowed Lauren exactly one minute to apply whatever makeup she wanted. I’m not sure how, but she somehow managed smokey eyes and the perfect gloss application in under sixty seconds.
“See,” she said, standing behind me at the mirror. “You’re stunning.”
I smiled. I looked the best I had in years. As soon as I thought it, all the color drained from my face. Cal was bound to stop by the block party at some point. What if he thought I’d worn this dress to get his attention?
“Nope,” Lauren said, shaking her head. “Whatever you’re thinking, stop. We’re going outside right now.”
The party was already in full swing. Someone had set up a sound system to play an eclectic mix of songs. Thankfully, whoever selected the playlist had better taste in music than Mom. The neighbors clustered in groups to chat, others moved from one table to the next filling their paper plates. A crowd had formed around the dessert table. I was relieved to see Mom behind it, passing out treats. I spotted Poppy arranging food at the table next to ours and sucked in a breath when I saw who stood beside her.
“Aren’t you glad you’re not wearing that romper now,” Lauren whispered in my ear.
As if he sensed me staring, Cal looked up. Our eyes locked and his jaw clenched. I dropped my gaze to my sandals and when I looked back up, he’d disappeared into the crowd.
Lauren gave me a puzzled look, and I shook my head.
“Ok,” she said linking my arm with hers. “But we’re discussing that later. Let’s get some food before the flies find it.”
The half hour I promised passed, then the hour, then another. Everyone was eager to talk to me about the desserts or my dress. Even if their compliments were inspired by pity, it felt good to spend time with the families I’d grown up with and to meet the ones who had moved to the street after I left. I spotted Cal several times, weaving through the crowd with Skye. More than once I thought he was walking toward me, but then someone would pull one of us into a conversation. Finally, as the sun began to drop behind the mountains, I felt something lick the back of my leg and turned to find Skye staring up at me with a big doggy grin.
Cal had his back to me, talking to Principal Twillings, so I bent and scratched Skye’s ears. She flopped onto her back, tugging Cal’s arm enough that he turned and saw me. His eyes darkened, and I realized he could see halfway down my dress where he stood. I straightened and Skye jumped up as well, wagging her tail.
“You look,” Cal started, then shook his head. “You’re not making this easy, Rowan.”
“Making what easy?”
He placed a gentle hand on my elbow and guided me to the edge of the crowd. His touch made my stomach flutter, and I chided myself for still being so attracted to someone who’d rejected me earlier in the week.
“First,” he said, lowering his voice. “I need to apologize for how I acted the other day.”
“Which part? Kissing me or running off after?” Though, I’d been pretty relieved when he left. There’s only so much embarrassment I can handle before I cry, and I’d entered the danger zone.
He blew out a long breath. “Both.”
Ok, so he regretted kissing me but he also regretted stopping? I wasn’t sure what to make of that. “You said first. What else?”
“Only that it can’t happen again. You’re my patient.”
“For the next three weeks,” I said, then realized that sounded like I wanted to pick up where we left off as soon as I finished PT. “So, I agree, that can never happen again. With any luck, I’ll find a job far from Peace Falls by the time we’re done my sessions. The last thing I need is more complication in my life.”
Cal smiled. “So, you’re wearing that dress to torture me, not seduce me?”
“No,” I huffed. “I’m wearing the dress Lauren made me wear.”
Cal bit his lower lip and shook his head. “Somehow that makes it worse.”
A loud boom sounded in the distance. I looked up in time to see fireworks flash weakly in the fading sky. Another screamed and exploded with a shower of sparks.
“Little early for fireworks,” I said, but when I looked back, Cal and Skye were gone.
He had a real talent for running, but I was honestly glad. A man as sexy as Cal should be taken in small doses. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. Any interaction with him left my heart racing. It was time to grab a cupcake, stream a couple movies, and turn off all thoughts of Cal. Once I felt more in control, I searched the crowd for Lauren and found her on her hands and knees peering under a folding table. That was odd enough, but people were peeking under lawn chairs and porches up and down Sullivan Street. Mom was knee deep in Mrs. Adams’s shrubbery.
“What’s going on?” I asked Lauren.
She stood and brushed off her dress. “Cal’s dog ran off. We’re hoping she’s hiding nearby.”
“Did you see which way Skye went?” Chris asked, sprinting to me.
I shook my head.
“Cal took off in that direction,” Poppy said, pointing toward Broad Street. “Lauren, you’re parked outside the barricade, aren’t you?”
“Let me grab my keys,” she said, running toward my house.
“I’m coming with you,” Chris said.
“No,” Poppy said. “You and I will look for Skye on foot. Lauren can drive while Rowan looks for the dog because her back is too jacked to do anything more useful.”
“Um, thanks.”
“Just find the damn dog, Rowan,” Poppy snapped. “Skye is more than a pet. She’s a support animal.”
With that, Poppy and Chris took off. The rest of the neighbors were fanning out as well, many calling Skye’s name. Lauren bounded down the porch steps, keys in hand.
“Did you know Cal had a support animal?” I asked as we walked to her car, which was parked on Broad Street by Cal’s house.
She shook her head. “She doesn’t wear a vest or anything. Plus, a service animal wouldn’t bolt from her human.”
“Poppy sounded certain.”
“Support animal or not, we better start looking before it gets dark.”